Chapter 128
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 128
Chapter Title: The Tower of Grief
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But in the end, he couldn’t bring himself to draw his sword.
A choice he himself couldn’t comprehend.
Miek hid his confusion and growled.
“Count yourself lucky you came as an envoy. Otherwise, my sword wouldn’t have been so patient.”
“Hmm. No need to hold back on my account. I suppose that’s just how you Alliance cowards are—so considerate.”
As Chris sneered, Miek clenched his fists tightly.
But he forced himself to suppress his anger.
He made an excuse.
‘Even if he is a Majin, cutting down an envoy who hasn’t even finished his business is not the act of an honorable knight.’
Miek denied the sense of crisis he had just felt.
After all, it made no sense to feel threatened by a mere 4-Star opponent.
‘I’ll deal with him later when I get the chance. If I come up with a decent excuse, I should be able to lop off a limb or two. Something to look forward to.’
A cruel glint flickered in Miek’s eyes.
Meanwhile, Chris watched Miek and simply shrugged.
‘A shame. Well, no matter. This won’t be the only chance.’
The menacing way Miek kept glaring at him suggested he was planning to cause trouble soon.
‘It might not be a bad idea to use him to shake up the Law Nation.’
A clever plan formed in Chris’s mind.
It was a way to eliminate the man while turning the tables to his own advantage.
It wouldn’t be difficult.
In any case, the confrontation between the two made the atmosphere even more hostile.
The knights of the Law Nation glared at Chris as if they wanted to kill him.
Young Count Roy, who had been swept along, wore a nervous expression, as if he himself were the target. The equally cowardly Allos whispered, his voice trembling as if his heart were shrinking to the size of a pea.
“Y-Young Lord, in the future, please be a little more careful with your words…”
“What about them?”
Allos looked as if he were about to burst with frustration.
“Th-this isn’t the Magitech Empire, it’s the Alliance bastards’ territory…”
Chris cut him off and asked nonchalantly.
“Allos, who are we?”
“…We are envoys representing the Great Dark Magic House.”
“And? Are you saying we should cower like turtles just because the enemy is scary?”
“…”
“Don’t forget. Our actions represent the Dark Magic House. Even here in enemy territory, even with a sword at our throats, we must remain dignified. Understand?”
Allos lowered his head, his face flushed with shame.
“I-I’ll keep that in mind.”
Chris shrugged.
‘Truthfully, even as I say this, it’s not like I care that much about the honor of the Dark Magic House.’
Nevertheless, there was a reason for his warning.
He was in the middle of his succession trial.
Passing the succession trial perfectly was just as important as resolving the Gold Cross affair.
It was best to be careful and avoid any complaints about tarnishing the prestige of the Dark Magic House.
Just then, Jupien, who had been quietly training her grip strength with a hand exerciser and ignoring the surrounding squabble, peeked over and asked.
…For reference, contrary to her doll-like appearance, Jupien was an eccentric training fanatic. She was the type to squeeze in practice whenever and wherever she could, even using lightness techniques to keep up on foot while others rode.
“What’s the plan now?”
“First, we need to meet Princess Olivia. The Law King is unlikely to meet with Majin like us directly.”
The moment Olivia’s name left his lips, his heart quivered slightly.
He was finally going to meet her.
‘I couldn’t see her for so long in my past life.’
After leaving the family, he had never seen her again.
After the Age of Ruin began, Olivia met a horrific end.
While there was hardly anyone who didn’t meet a tragic end during the Age of Ruin, Olivia’s death was among the most gruesome.
The thought made his chest ache.
Jupien saw his expression and frowned.
“What’s wrong with you?”
“…What?”
“You look like you’re in pain.”
“…You’re mistaken.”
“No, I’m not. Something’s off. Come here.”
Jupien placed her palm on Chris’s forehead.
“No fever. Or did you get hit with a fatal curse? Hurry up and go back to being my insufferable little brother.”
“…What are you talking about? Why am I your little brother?”
“You’re younger than me, aren’t you? So you’re my little brother. The kind of little brother I want to beat to a pulp and crush under my heel.”
“…Stop talking nonsense and get your hand off me.”
Chris pushed Jupien’s hand away and schooled his expression.
‘I have to be careful.’
Olivia didn’t know him.
He had to treat her as a complete stranger.
“Anyway, I’m going to resolve this situation by cooperating with Princess Olivia. With her abilities, having awakened her Star Blood, she should be a great help.”
“Will she really cooperate? We’re Majin.”
Jupien asked skeptically, but Chris nodded firmly.
“She will.”
The Olivia he knew was someone who wouldn’t hesitate to walk through fire for her people.
She wouldn’t refuse to join hands with a Majin, either.
However.
“You cannot meet Princess Olivia.”
“…What did you say?”
“Princess Olivia is currently in long-term seclusion for prayer.”
“…”
A sullen-faced palace steward came and informed Chris’s party.
“Don’t you dare even think about meeting the princess. Just follow the guide we assign you and investigate the truth on your own, or whatever.”
On your own.
It meant they wouldn’t cooperate with the investigation in any way.
The assigned guide would be a monitor who could turn into an enemy with a drawn sword at any moment.
“I’m warning you in advance. If you show any suspicious behavior under the guise of investigating, we will immediately cut off your heads and expel your corpses. Keep that in mind.”
With those words, he turned and vanished.
“…”
Chris’s lips were sealed.
‘This is problematic.’
For his plan to work, Olivia’s participation was essential.
‘Strange. Secluded in prayer during an emergency like this?’
It wasn’t like the Olivia he knew.
Sensing something was amiss, Chris spoke to Mari.
“Is there a way to find out what’s going on with Princess Olivia?”
[Ohoho, of course. I’ll be right back.]
Mari returned in a flash.
Dangling from her hand was the pale-faced ghost of a young man.
[This is a ghost who has been hiding in this castle. We should be able to find out by asking him.]
Whatever the ghost had experienced at Mari’s hands while being dragged there, he immediately fell to his knees, filled with fear.
[I-I’ll tell you anything, s-so please, just spare my life!]
“…I’m not going to kill you. Besides, you’re already dead, what life is there to spare? Do you know about Princess Olivia?”
[Y-Yes? Of course, I do.]
“Why is she secluded in prayer? Surely it’s not for some romantic reason like praying to the constellations to drive away the Black Death. Is there some other circumstance?”
[Well…]
The ghost’s eyes darted around.
As he hesitated, Mari’s “ohoho” laugh grew louder.
[Our little cutie is being so tight-lipped in front of the Young Master. I wonder if he’ll talk more freely if I rip his lips apart from top to bottom?]
[I-I’ll talk right now!!]
The ghost hurriedly continued.
[P-Princess Olivia has been in seclusion for a long time.]
“A long time? Why?”
[It’s because of the death of the cursed prince.]
“…What?”
After a moment of silence, a staggered question escaped him.
“…What do you mean by that?”
[Princess Olivia fell into a great despair after the death of her older brother, the cursed prince.]
Perhaps sensing the dark shift in Chris’s mood, the ghost glanced around nervously and continued.
[She blames herself for his death and has cut off all outside activities, remaining in seclusion.]
* * *
‘I can’t believe Olivia has been living like this.’
He had never imagined it.
‘I thought she’d be doing fine since I disappeared.’
*Thud.* He took a step forward.
He was now walking through a secluded rear area of the Argent Royal Castle in the Law Nation.
Although he, a Majin, was roaming the castle freely, no one stopped him.
This was an ominous place that no one ever visited.
The place where the former Law Queen, a pawn of a demon, had confessed her sins and taken her own life in front of her son.
And also the place where her cursed seed had been confined.
The ‘Tower of Grief’ appeared before Chris.
‘It’s been a while.’
Chris looked at the tower with a strange sense of detachment.
In his childhood, it had felt like a massive, insurmountable symbol of despair, but looking at it now, it was just a small tower.
He didn’t feel any particular emotion.
It was likely because of the Age of Ruin that Chris had experienced.
His experience of living through that horrific pandemonium, where the whole world had turned into a living hell, made his childhood memories feel faded.
It was more like, *Oh, that happened, didn’t it?* That was about it.
For a similar reason, his hatred for his father, the Law King, was as calm and placid as a deep lake.
‘Still, it wasn’t a place I ever wanted to come back to.’
The only reason he had come was because there was someone he had to meet.
*Creeak.* He opened the rusted door, revealing the tower’s interior.
As befitting a place used solely for confinement, it was bleak and narrow.
He climbed the familiar, yet eternally unfamiliar, stairs, and the room where he had stayed as a child appeared.
Narrow, as expected.
A space where the only hope was a single window overlooking an emerald river.
A figure was there.
Meeting again after so much time had passed.
“It’s a pleasure to meet you for the first time.”
Chris lifted the corners of his mouth into his usual smile to hide his emotions and spoke.
“Princess Olivia.”
* * *
Olivia looked just as Chris remembered her.
A young appearance, around her mid-teens.
Emerald green hair. Sapphire eyes that seemed to be embedded with jewels.
She was a girl with the appearance of a fairy from a storybook, or perhaps an angel.
However, she wasn’t exactly the same as he remembered.
‘Why is she so thin?’
She was so gaunt it was heartbreaking.
And it wasn't just her frail appearance that had changed.
“A Majin?”
Olivia frowned.
“Are you the envoy from the Dark Magic House? You’re their new rising star, Young Lord Christian?”
Olivia seemed to have heard of Christian.
“I was under the impression the palace steward was to receive you. What is your business here?”
Her tone was thorny.
Chris had never once heard Olivia speak like that.
The Olivia he knew would speak with a warm voice even to an unforgivable sinner.
‘It doesn’t seem to be because I’m a Majin. Has her personality changed? Could it be because of my death?’
He was bewildered.
He hadn’t expected this situation at all.
The bigger problem was that it didn’t seem like she had merely become prickly.
‘Those are the eyes of someone who has completely closed off their heart.’
He recalled the story he heard from the ghost Mari had caught.
Her despair had worsened over time, and now she refused all outside contact.
‘This is a problem.’
Chris frowned.
He would have to put aside the sorrow of seeing his long-lost sister so broken for now.
If Olivia was like this, there was no way he could properly resolve this incident.